We have long discussed the statistics and circumstances of law enforcement performance during lethal encounters.  There are usually two directions that the discussion takes, based primarily on the author’s perspective.  Either training is the primary animator, or the psychological and physiological impact of the incident leads to poor performance.

Since Jedburgh is a training outfit, you can guess what side of the fence I come down on. What may not be obvious is that our firearms training is less about weapons than it is about people.  Let me share with you what are considered the SOF Truths.  The original author is actually a non-SOF retired Army Colonel named John Collins, who was nonetheless a smart guy and whose SOF Truths remain as valid today as when he wrote them in 1987 for a Congressional Report.

• Humans are more important than hardware
• Quality is better than quantity
• Special Operations Forces cannot be mass produced
• Competent Special Operations Forces cannot be created after emergencies occur

While these were written for very specific military units, it doesn’t take much imagination to apply these truths to law enforcement units, departments or agencies.  In my opinion, the truths are fundamentals that can be applied to any profession.  Here are the Jedburgh Training Truths ©:

• The man is the weapon, the weapons are just tools
• A quality professional is better than a quantity of  amateurs
• Training must be tailored to each individual to deliver perfect performance
• A core of professional competence must be constantly maintained

These truths permeate our training mindset and our entire approach to business.  You can’t train firearms effectively without training the whole man.  Understanding how the human brain learns and processes information, the psychological impact of violence, and the realities of modern combat are essential to building a world class program.  Training time must be devoted to Mindset, Weapon Manipulations (Marksmanship), and Tactics in equal measures.

Combat Triad

There are plenty of indications that our current approach to training needs to be modified.  In the last ten years, there has not been any appreciable improvement in the number of law enforcement officers killed, or even the hit probability of officers involved in shootings.

Did you know that there is no correlation between how well an officer qualifies and the probability of the same officer hitting his intended target in a gunfight?  There is some isolated data that indicates a slightly positive correlation, but when you factor in the small population and high standard deviation you end up with statistically insignificant results.

The standards we use to determine accuracy and proficiency with the use of firearms does not indicate either when the officer is fighting for his life.

We need to develop a comprehensive and holistic approach to firearms training.  The entire training paradigm requires modification to field the most professional police force possible.  It will save lives.

Don’t train on what you want.  Train on what you need.  Jedburgh Corp has developed the most comprehensive firearms training available anywhere.  It was built on the vast personal combat experience of some of the most elite special operators in the country.  Contact us at info@Jedburgh-USA.com to provide feedback on the blog, or discuss your training needs.  Also, feel free to post your comments.